Sinomania!

Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian showed his hand on Monday and revealed that it is firmly ensconced in Uncle Sam’s glove. In an interview with the influential Financial Times (reported here by MSNBC) Chen said that he would not use missiles against China “without seeking the United States' opinion first.”

With this one revealing statement Chen clearly shows that Taiwan will respectfully defer to its creator even in matters of life and death. That is unless the looming threats of Chinese missile attacks used to justify American arm sales to the economically challenged island are themselves bogus.

Chen attempted to clarify his unpopular popular referendum on the island’s sovereign status with this tongue-twister: “It is not a referendum that moves towards independence but one that rejects unification.” Ah, politics. His statement neatly reflects the latest “independence or unification” pubic opinion polls that show well over half of the country wanting status quo indefinitely or decision later.

Meanwhile, Taiwan mutual funds are getting the green light to buy mainland stocks, Taiwan insurance giant Fubon is planning a joint venture across the straits in Xiamen, and so the economic integration slowly grows repeating the process by which China coolly absorbed Hong Kong and Macau.